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FREEDOM FROM KARMA

By Al JohnsonDeveloped in Cooperation with the Global University Staff

Global University 1211 South Glenstone Avenue Springfield, Missouri 65804

USA www.globaluniversity.edu

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Global UniversitySpringfield, Missouri, USA

© 2009 Global UniversityAll rights reserved. First edition 2009

Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture is taken from the Holy Bible, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. Copyright© 1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible Society. All rights reserved throughout the world. Used by permission of International Bible Society.

PN 01.09

ISBN 978-0-7617-1428-6

Printed in the United States of America

Table of Contents

Lesson 1 — The View of Karma ...........................................................4Lesson 2 — God and Man ...................................................................10Lesson 3 — The Cross as God’s Power ..............................................16Lesson 4 — Becoming a Follower of Jesus ........................................20Lesson 5 — In Obedience to Jesus ......................................................26Lesson 6 — Christ in Culture ..............................................................30Glossary ............................................................................................37Reference List .....................................................................................41Response Page ....................................................................................43

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As I was growing up I had questions that needed answers just like everybody does, but there was one in particular that never left my mind. Whenever I ran into a problem I wondered if there was any way out of my karma. Love, greed, anger, obsession, I had them like other people do. I tried to be as moral as I could. Sometimes I would try very hard to eliminate all of my desires, but I never succeeded. I believed in the four noble truths, and I even tried to meditate at times, but I just could not walk in the eightfold path. Why? Because I still had to go to work, make a living, and depend on others. It was impossible for me to drop everything and stay in the temple. My health was sporadic. Sometimes my life was a complete failure, and I felt exhausted with living. I believed that good living was a result of good karma, and it was discouraging to think that I had failed in past lives to accumulate better karma. I did not feel like I was doing so well at making any merit in this life.

What really brought me to despair were my debts. My income was never quite enough, and I ended up having to rely on the loan sharks. You have no idea how discouraging it is to work hard on making money, but then have to hand it over every day to the collector. Eventually what I owed on a daily basis was more than what I earned in a day. My life was hell with the collectors coming around and threatening me at all hours.

I started to think I was just born with bad luck. Nothing worked and now I was in debt with no way out. To top it all off, I lost my job. I thought about killing myself, but my morality always told me I would go to hell if I did. Hell? What’s the difference from here?

One day when I was at the bottom with no one to turn to, I sat by my window feeling very depressed. It happened that my elderly neighbor walked by. I thought he was kind of a strange man. I’d seen him many times; my guess was that he was around 70. His name was Wirachai. He lived with his wife of many years, and his children were all grown up and

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married. He was strange in the eyes of the folks in the neighborhood on several counts. He never joined any of our neighborhood drinking parties. Whenever any big event goes on like an ordination into the monkhood or our New Year time, everybody goes all out on the drinking. Although he hung around with us, his non-participation in the drinking stirred up quite a bit of ridicule. And that leads to the second reason why he was strange. He was always happy, friendly, and helpful, and no amount of teasing or ridicule could change his attitude. He had a reputation in the community for being kind; whenever someone was in trouble his family always lent a hand. The third thing was that although he lived quite humbly and was certainly not rich, he was happy—obviously at peace, and generous.

I myself was not too sure about him because I did not know what really was behind his smile. Deep down I figured there must be some angle that he was working in all of this, trying to gain personal benefit somehow. However, on this day as I watched him outside the window I thought to myself, he is a kind man. I bet if I went over and got to know him a bit I could borrow some money from him. Then a saying that I had heard from my youth came through my mind, “Listen to the elders.” They have been through a lot in this world. They’ve fought and struggled and succeeded.

So I slipped out of my door as he walked past, and I said, “Hello uncle, how are you doing?” He turned and replied, “Good. How about you? What’s your name? This old man doesn’t remember so well anymore!”

“I’m Ton.”“What’s going on? You seem kind of tense. Anything I can do for

you?”“Umm, I’m having trouble with money.” I just ended up blurting it

out which was not at all what I had planned. “We all have problems. Don’t give up son, stand firm.”“Thanks. But uncle, I don’t think my problems are something that

I can fight. It’s my karma. I think that I must have done some horrible things in my previous lives to be in such a mess.”

“What is happening that makes you think this is true?”“They just keep getting bigger and bigger every day, so big I can

barely go on.”

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I was feeling stupid because there I was telling a stranger about my problems. But Wirachai did not seem to be phased by this at all. He said, “Umm, Ton, why don’t we talk about this at my place?” He took me to an old but clean dining table inside his house, welcoming me with a smile and a big glass of water. He talked to me as if he knew what was going on inside of me. “You’re tired of living aren’t you? I’ll bet you have even thought about ending your life at times.” I nodded my agreement.

As we sat there something weird happened. His gentle questions and kind demeanor soaked into my soul. I could feel his care, and all of a sudden I wanted to tell him everything. I started telling him my whole sad story together with all the solutions my mind could think of. I told him I wanted peace, I wanted to be free, I wanted a stable life but I did not know where to start. Everything seemed dark and I seemed powerless.

Uncle listened patiently. He said, “Ton, we can’t solve all problems in one day. I’ve had such problems myself.”

“Really, I thought I’m the only one.”“Believe me, everyone goes through these things. Listen, I am glad

you stopped by today. I’m always willing to help. Take this little money. Consider it a little money to help you get around and look for a new job.”

I sat there feeling overwhelmed by his generosity, and I just could not get up to go. There was a question burning in my heart. I said to him, “Uncle, what about the law of karma? Do you believe in it? I think I might have worse karma than other people because my life has been so miserable.”

“So you’re thinking of the saying, ‘do good, receive good; do evil, receive evil.’”

“Exactly, that is our karma, we get paid back for the things we have done. So how can we free ourselves from this cycle?”

“Ton, in one sense you can say the law of karma is like a natural rule. Whatever we do, we take its consequence. If you put your hand in the fire, it will get burned. I believe ‘you harvest what you sow.’ I have a book that is very special to me that tells us that we cannot free ourselves from our karma, from the accumulation of all of our deeds. It’s like this, you and I are sitting in these chairs, and it is impossible for us to lift up a chair while we are sitting in it. But that same book also tells us some

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wonderful news—that there is someone who can free us from our karma and give us fullness of life. This person can break us from the cycle of being born, getting old, having pain, and dying to have life in his presence.”

“Uncle, I have never heard that before. Who could release us from our karma? It’s what we’ve done; we ourselves must be responsible for it.”

“You’re right. It’s impossible for a human being. But there’s the truth that you and many others still don’t know. There is one man who has already done such a thing. He has already taken all of our sin and bad karma upon himself so that we can be free.”

“This is all new to me. Is this some kind of special teaching about how to reach nirvana or a new sect?”

“No. It is the news of the living, creator God who sent His Son Jesus to bear our sins. God loves us all and He is willing to help when we’re down and will always be at our side in any situation.”

“So Uncle, you’re just talking about the Christian religion. That is for white people, not us. You have not joined those white people have you?” I felt disappointed; I was really hoping that Uncle knew something that could help me.

“Slow down for a second here Ton, keep a cool heart. You are both right and wrong my son. I am not talking about religion here. I know there is a religion called Christianity and that many white people and others believe in it. But what I am talking about is a relationship with the living God through Jesus who died and rose again. Look at me, do I look or act like a foreigner? I live in the same country you do, eat the same foods as you, and speak the same language as you. I love our customs and culture. The good news is that Jesus is for all people, and we can know Him and follow Him within our own culture. So this is not about a foreign religion, but about someone who can bring our people freedom from their karma and the hope of life in heaven.”

Uncle had caught me here. All my life I had heard people talk badly about those who follow the white man’s religion. Uncle was right. He was one of us, yet there is something different. But my mind was filled with all kinds of questions and objections.

“Ok, Uncle, I have heard people talk about God before, but He appears to be ignorant and evil. If He exists, why would He let us suffer? Why doesn’t He just make us born rich and happy? Or does it make Him

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happy to see us suffer? Is He the one who sends grief to humanity? Creating a world that is full of problems shows that He must be evil.”

“Where do bad things come from? Aren’t they from our own heart? Our sacred book says that God made things good, but it was humans who became ignorant and evil and fell into darkness because they would not obey him.”

“Well you have given me many things to think about Uncle. Before I go though I have one more question. We are all taught here from the time we are little that ‘We can only rely on ourselves.’ We are taught that we have to follow the eightfold path in order to break out of the cycle of rebirth. Only we can do that.”

“Well my son, look at it this way. Human beings can’t live independently. We were created to depend on each other. When we are born, we need milk from our mothers, money from our father’s career, and love from relatives. We don’t ask for those things, but still other people give them to us. You see? We need others. In the same way, we were created to rely on God. God knows us and loves us. He sees all our sins and karma and He wants to help us. He made you with the freedom to choose. He will never force you to turn towards Him. But if we ask for His help, He will always be there. He gives us new life, not in the future but now, and can help us in all or most difficult situations.”

“Uncle, thank you so much. This was very interesting, even though I don’t understand it all, it makes me feel good. If God can really do what you said that gives me a lot of hope.

“You’re right, this does bring you hope. Remember, God loves you, and values you, and His ear is open to your cry 24 hours a day. Anytime you want to get together and talk more about this, feel free to drop by.”

Thank you Uncle and thank you for helping me with some money.”I went home and spent the day beating the pavement looking for

work. I now knew why Uncle had seemed a bit strange, and at the same time I was very attracted to this humble man.

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To Help You learn Please answer the following questions in the space provided below or in your notebook.

1. Do you think it is possible to break free from the law of karma?

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2. Ton felt like he had no time to practice religion and extinguish desire. What about you?

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---------------------------------------------------------------------------------3. What was the good news that Uncle Wirachai shared with Ton?

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---------------------------------------------------------------------------------4. Uncle Wirachai said there is a difference between religion and a

relationship. What do you think?

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That evening when I got home, I was confused, but deep inside I felt comforted by the encouragement and help from Uncle Wirachai. But what was bothering me was the story he told. If God really exists, why don’t I know Him? Why do we have to suffer? Why can’t we see Him? Talking about religion always makes my head hurt. I don’t have time to study it. Just trying to survive is killing me already.

Before I went to sleep that night, one question popped up in my mind: “Does God really love me?” All of my life I had been taught that our goal in life is to try and extinguish all desire. That means if God loves people He is ignorant because He is still caught up in desire. But why does it make me feel so good to think about being loved by this God? While I was going over all this in my mind, this thought came to me: “God loves me and wants to help me.” I fell asleep with that in my mind.

Normally I wake up late, but on that day I got up quite early and yet feeling fresh. I slept so soundly that I did not even remember my dreams. I got up from bed and looked outside the window. Uncle Wirachai was watering his plants while humming songs. What a happy person! I looked at my clock and saw that I still had 2 hours before I needed to leave to look for work. I was suddenly seized by the urge to go over and ask him for his blessing for good luck today.

When Uncle saw me he called out, “Good morning. How was your sleep?”

“Very good! It must have been your God. I slept well all night.”“Yes it must have been Him. Remember I told you that God loves you

and wants to be in relationship with you. I was praying for you all day yesterday.”

“Thank you for thinking of me. I felt very confused after talking with you, but the idea that there is a God who loves me comforted me. Do you have time for a little talk?

“Sure. I’m always happy to talk with you. I always enjoy having the chance to tell people about the love of God and His power to free us

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from karma and give us new life.” When I first went up to Uncle I was just hoping for a blessing for

good luck, but he was so welcoming it made me want to ask him some more questions. “Well, you know that common saying, ‘All religions are equally good, they teach us to do good’? If that is true why should I change my religion if it is just as good as any other? It is what I have learned and followed from my ancestors.”

Uncle was quiet for a moment and then he slowly said, “Well Ton, remember, I told you yesterday my faith in Jesus was not the same as ‘religion’ as you are thinking about. Let me try and illustrate it in this way. I do agree that religion in general is a very good thing; religion teaches us morality and ethics. You can compare the function of religion with what a mirror does for us. When we look into a mirror, it shows us the condition of our face. Suppose I have been out working all day and my face is really dirty. When I come into the house and look in the mirror, it shows me the condition of my face and where the dirt is. But the mirror itself does not clean my face for me. How do I clean my face?”

“With a handkerchief or wash with water.”“Yes. Without doing that our faces stay dirty. In a similar way

religions act as a mirror to reflect the state of our heart. You can choose the precepts of any religion and purpose in your heart to follow them, yet you will find that you cannot do it perfectly. Religion acts as a tool to show us the condition of our heart, but just like a mirror cannot wash our face, religion cannot wash us from our sins. But God doesn’t only give reflections. He is like a handkerchief and clean water that wash us clean. So that is why I say that knowing Jesus is not religion. It is a relationship with the one who made us and is able to forgive our sins and wash us clean.”

“Alright, I see your point. But what is a real obstacle for me is the whole idea of God. You know that we are taught that it is irrelevant whether there is God is not. The important thing is to work the eightfold path to free oneself. This whole idea of God seems so strange. I have just always heard people talk about God and thought it was the foreigner’s deity, just like we wear images around our neck.

“God is the creator of the universe and all humans. No one created God. He is not nature, or a power, or karma, or the Dharma. He is Spirit,

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pure, just, and merciful. He is in every place, has all power, and knows everything. He sent His Son to earth to save humans He loves from their evil deeds. He promises us that we can live in His presence forever and not be punished for our sins.”

Uncle stopped for a minute and went over to dig around in the drawer of a small desk in the corner of the room. “I thought there was one in there” he said as he pulled out an envelope. As he slipped the card out he said, “Ton, you know how we always send New Year’s cards to people. You know what is written on the inside when they ask for a blessing right?”

“Of course, it asks all the sacred things of the world and universe to protect, help, and prosper us.”

“You see Ton, our people do believe in things that are sacred. Notice how it says ‘things’? This is almost correct, except that there is not a sacred thing, but a sacred Person. It is the most sacred Person who exists who can bring us blessing.”

“Alright, let’s assume for a minute that God does exist. What is the problem with sin? Everybody sins, and we all face suffering, but what does that have to do with God? You know how we are taught Uncle that we are born good and sin is just ignorance and false views. We don’t need God or anyone like that; we just need to see the truth of the four noble truths and practice the eightfold path.”

“That is a great question Ton. Sin is like a wall between God and us. Our disobedience of God’s commands means that our relationship with Him is shattered. We have been evil in our actions, our speech, and our minds. This broken relationship means that we are spiritually dead, even while we have physical life. These evil acts are the fruits that grow from us being sinful, not just doing wrong acts.”

He got up again and this time came back with a sheet of paper and a pen. He started drawing a tree. “It’s like this. Suppose I have a mango tree that produces sour fruit. But I want sweet mangos. So I work the soil and put in fertilizer and lots of water, but the next year the mangos are still sour. Why is that?”

“Because it’s the kind of mango, some are sweet and some are sour.”“Precisely! I cannot change the fruit by changing its environment. If I

want sweet mangos I will have to pull out the old tree from the roots and plant seeds for sweet mangos. So we humans have a sinful nature which

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we are born with. It is like the sour mango seed, and its fruit is seen in evil actions, thoughts, and an evil mind. Only God can take out the seed of sin and change our heart. Somebody illustrated it like this to me. It’s like the pig and the cat. The pig loves dirt. You can wash it off and it will go right back to the mud because that is its character and nature and the way it keeps cool. But the cat likes things clean. It is its character and nature to want to be clean. As sinners we will always turn towards evil things and away from God. We can try very hard, but we will always sin. But when God frees us from our karma, forgives our sins and give us new life, He also gives us a new nature. We live in a different way because we are different by His power.”

Uncle laid down the paper and pen and continued. “When we rebel against God and are separated from Him, we can never be completely satisfied with life. It is like there is an empty space in our deepest inner person that longs for a relationship with God. People try to fill that void with hard work that consumes most of their time, or eating, drinking, partying, chasing women or anything that makes them feel good for a short time. But they still feel empty inside. Spiritual death then leads to physical death, to God’s judgment on all our evil deeds, and to being cast out from His presence.

“But that is where I get confused. I have done some wrong things, but I have never hurt anyone. How does that involve God; why would He punish me for such small things?”

“Many people feel this way, but they miss the greatest sin of all. Think of it this way. You know how we are to respect and honor our parents. They have sacrificed for us, given us life, fed us, cared for us, and sent us to school. We can never repay our debt of gratitude to them. But suppose that your parents are now old, and wrinkled, and are not strong anymore. So you’re walking down the street and see a handsome couple in the strength of life and you decide, ‘Hey, I want to honor these people as my parents. They look wonderful, and healthy, and rich.’ So you fall to the ground and bow to them and beg them to become your parents because you are sick of your own.”

Uncle saw my eyes grow wide as he told this story. “So you would never do that right Ton?”

“Absolutely, it would be the height of ingratitude to dishonor my parents like that!”

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“But that is precisely what all of us humans have done. God has given us life, but we have rejected Him, ignored Him, never given Him thanks, and have bowed and worshipped all kinds of things that human hands have made. We are like ungrateful children. That is the greatest sin.”

“That is a lot to think about Uncle.”“We have had a long morning talk, did you have breakfast yet?”“Actually I came over to ask for a blessing for luck today. I have to go

out looking for a job again.”“Oh dear, then let’s get you something to eat. Come over to my house,

I have the meal ready. Besides, I can pray for you to be blessed today. What do you say?”

“Are you sure? Wouldn’t I be troubling you?”“No, come on. The food is still hot.”We sat down at the table and I saw the old man simply thank His

God for his breakfast. Then he prayed very simply a blessing for me, “Dear God, may You be with Ton for his job application today. May Your mercy be with him. Please prepare the suitable job for him. Please bless him that he will lack no more. In Jesus’ name. Amen.”

After breakfast I went out and spent my day looking for work. I didn’t get a job on that day, but something felt different. My body was tired but my mind was still fresh. Before I got home I stopped by the market near my house. I heard a voice behind me, “”Hey Ton, did you find a job today?” It was Uncle Wirachai.

“Not yet.”“But you look like you just got one.”“Really? Not yet. But I feel good inside today, like I have a lot of

energy and hope. Maybe it’s your prayer for me.”“I’ve been praying for you all day, so Jesus is giving you strength.

I know you are going to find something. Get some rest and start again tomorrow. I believe God is going to help you. Remember you can always ask Him anything.”

That night as I lay in my bed Uncle’s words again rang in my heart. I fell asleep saying, “God if You’re real, please help me find a job.”

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1. What is your view of God? How is it different from the God that Uncle Wirachai describes?

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2. What was the greatest sin that Uncle Wirachai describes?

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---------------------------------------------------------------------------------3. What is the point of the illustration that Uncle Wirachai made about

the mirror?

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Several months went by. I would chat with Uncle Wirachai when I saw him outside, and a few times I dropped by his house to ask his advice. Remarkably I got a job with enough income to help me with my debt problem. Things were still tight, but by economizing I could scrape by. I was not sure if one could credit Uncle’s God with helping me on this or not. But it sure was good to have some regular money coming in.

One time Uncle invited me to a group that met in a home to study this book he called the Bible and to pray to Jesus. I was afraid to go, but he reassured me that there would not be anything strange and I would not be forced to do something I did not want to do. I had a pretty good time. The songs were fun to sing, but I had trouble understanding what they were talking about when they studied the Bible.

One night Uncle invited me to come to a friend’s house and watch a movie about the life of Jesus. I was touched as I watched Him die on the cross. But it raised a lot of questions. I decided one afternoon to drop by and ask him some more questions. We sat outside under a mango tree as the sun set and the air cooled.

“Thanks for inviting me to the movie. I enjoyed spending time with everyone and it was a very touching story. But there is something I don’t understand.”

“I am glad that you feel comfortable to talk with me about it. What is on your mind?”

“You people who believe in Jesus say that it was His death on the cross that frees us from our sins and bad karma. But when I see Him there on the cross, dying at such a young age, I just think that He must have done some very bad things in a previous life. A good person with good karma would never die like that.”

“Ton, that is a very common misunderstanding that people have when they first hear about the cross. But the deep meaning of the cross is

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that it shows God’s sacrificial love for us. Jesus himself prophesied in advance telling the people that no one could take His life from Him, but that He had the right to lay down His life and to take it up again. So He did this voluntarily for us. The Good News is that while we were still God’s enemies, when we were not interested in Him, He sent His Son to die for our sins. He did something for us that we are unable to do for ourselves.”

“What do you mean by that? It should be our responsibility to solve our own problems and depend upon ourselves.”

“What I mean is that if we had to stand before God one day and He was going to decide why He should let us into His presence, if we had to rely on our good deeds, we would never make it. Our sins have created a debt that we could not pay. Do you remember what happens at a funeral, when the family gives cloth to the monks?”

“Yes.”“What is the meaning of that?”“Well they are transferring the merit gained from that gift to their

dead relative.”“Precisely. You believe in the possibility of transferring merit from

one person to another. We have other ceremonies that do that as well. In a similar way we can think of what Jesus did on the cross for us as a way of transferring His righteousness and purity to us who are unrighteous and impure. This transfer happens by God’s grace, Jesus doing something for us that we do not deserve.”

“That is starting to make sense to me. But Jesus’ death brought Him so much suffering. It’s so unfair that He had to die for us.”

“That just shows us how much He really loves us. It was completely voluntary and done out of love for those He created. Remember the story of Srisuriyothai that you learned in school?”

“Of course. We went on a trip to see the stupa built to honor her up in Ayuthaya.”

During war with our enemies she wanted to help her husband the King. She was so worried she dressed as a soldier and entered the battle. At a critical moment when the King was going to be run through with a spear, she drove her elephant between him and his opponent and took the blow herself, which killed her. The King built that stupa to honor

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her sacrifice. She sacrificed herself for her husband and her people. In a much greater way Jesus sacrificed himself for us out of love, voluntarily, in order to save us from our sins.”

“Thank you so much Uncle for explaining the meaning of the cross to me. This is starting to make better sense. But I still have trouble with this idea of Jesus being the way to God. All religions are good; are we not all just worshipping the same God in different ways?”

“I know that a lot of people feel this way. When you really look at these different religions, you find that they have completely different goals and ways of getting there. If we are all really worshipping the same God it would mean that God cannot be known. He is always hiding behind a different mask. Another way of looking at it is to think of the keys that we have to the various rooms of our house. If you walk through my house you see many doors—a front door, bathroom door, kitchen door, bedroom door. Each door has its own key. But you cannot use my bathroom door key to get in the front door. In the same way, God has destined that there is only one way out of sins, which is Jesus. He holds the key to the door of sin’s removal.

It was now dark and as we sat quietly for a few moments I still felt confused. But one thing I was becoming more certain of. Although I did not understand everything that Uncle told me, I was feeling more and more comfortable talking with him about the things he believed. Uncle broke the silence. “Why don’t you drop by our group again next week. You have not been for a while. We are going to have a special dinner together before we have prayer.

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1. What was God’s plan to free us from our sin and bring us into relationship with himself?

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2. How does the story of Srisuriyothai helps us understand what Jesus did for us on the cross?

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---------------------------------------------------------------------------------3. How does Uncle Wirachai explain that Jesus is the only way to know

God?

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The meeting at Uncle’s house the next week marked a turning point in my life. I had come to a few of these gatherings and everyone was always very welcoming. For me the most special moment of these gatherings was when everybody prayed for one another. One person would share what he’d been through, what was troubling him, and then everybody prayed for that person. As I began to know the people better and learned their stories, I could see that in a lot of ways they were just like me. They had similar struggles and fears. But there was an observable difference; they were peaceful even in the midst of problems and they attributed this to their relationship with Jesus. I still felt like an outsider because I did not share this kind of experience with them. Every time I attended the group I had this new kind of warmth. I would come away feeling refreshed and inexplicably happy.

As they prayed, they would ask me if there was anything I wanted to ask God for. I normally declined or muttered something about wanting to have good health and luck. I was still unsure if I got that job because of Uncle Wirachai’s prayer to his God, but things were going better in my life now since I had begun to associate with these people. That night as they shared their stories of praise to their God and shared their problems, I was compelled to ask them to pray for me. So as they came around to me my heart started to pound.

The leader said, “Ton, do you have anything you want us to ask God to help you with this week?”

My mouth felt dry, and I kind of croaked out, “Actually I do. I am glad to know all of you, and I am grateful for your kindness to me. But I do not have the experience that you have with God in your lives. I am not sure I believe in Jesus, and I am afraid of what my family would say if I did become His follower. Pray that I can know for sure who He is.”

Uncle Wirachai spoke up. “Ton, we have all been in that position. You cannot believe because of what someone else says, you need to have

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your own experience of Jesus. All of us here in one way or another have come to a point where we knew that Jesus is the Truth, the Life, and the Way to know God. One of my favorite verses in the Bible is one where Jesus says that He is standing at the door of our hearts. For those who invite Him to enter in, He will come and bring them new life. We are going to pray for you tonight that you can know Jesus for who He is and hear His knock upon the door of your heart.”

I did not know what I was expecting to happen as they prayed. I sat there feeling nothing and then suddenly I began to weep. At first it was just a few tears, but then I began to sob and had the strangest feeling of peace, as if all my doubts and fears were gone. I felt as if a warm hand pressed down upon me and drew out of me every dark thing. The people were very respectful and nobody pestered me about what had happened. I went home feeling very light and warm inside and slept deeply.

In the morning I thought to myself that I had better wait for a while and see if this feeling goes away. Maybe today I would feel like Jesus is real, but tomorrow I wouldn’t. So I waited and did not say anything to Uncle about what had happened to me that night. He had given me a Bible and I read some parts. Although I did not understand everything, it was as if I heard the voice of Jesus talking to me. One day a few weeks later I read in the Bible where Jesus said, “If anyone wants to come after me, deny yourself, take up your cross, and follow me.” I could not get that out of my mind. It kept ringing in my heart and I knew it was time to talk to Uncle again.

That night when I got home from work I wandered by Uncle’s house.

“Hello Uncle. What are you reading?” I noticed he was reading under the mango tree.

“I am reading the Bible.”“That’s good. You love God so much.”“Reading the Bible is like reading a love letter from God. I’m reading

the part about Jesus being crucified. Every time I read this part, Jesus’ sacrifice always touches me. The love He has for me makes me want to follow Him closer and closer.”

“That’s interesting. Actually, that is what I wanted to talk with you about. I think Jesus is knocking on the door of my heart”

Uncle turned slowly towards me and closed his Bible. “Tell me what

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has happened Ton.” I told him about how I felt that night when I cried and then the impact of Jesus’ words about following Him. After I finished I said, “I think that He wants me to follow Him, but I don’t know how to start. And I am afraid that my family is going to reject me when they find out.”

“Ton, I am so happy that you have come to the place where you want to follow Jesus. Remember, Jesus said that we need to count the cost of following Him. You are going to have people reject you, and your family will misunderstand you. But you will never regret turning your life over to Him.”

Uncle continued, “Let me just go back over for a minute what this Good News means and how we respond to it.”

“We believe in a living God, the creator of all things, who is holy, just, and merciful. As humans we are created in His image and were made to live in relationship with Him. But our first human parents rebelled against God’s commands and the whole creation fell and feels the effects of this sin, this disobedience. The result of our sin is separation from God during this life and eternal separation from God who is holy and must judge our sins. However, God is also rich in mercy and He prepared a way for us to be reconciled to Him. He sent His Son Jesus who did something for us that we cannot do for ourselves. Jesus died on a cross to bear our sins. On the third day He rose again and returned to heaven and will give the gift of life to all who trust in Him.”

“So this is the gift that he offers us, freedom from our sin, breaking out of the cycle of karma, fullness of life now and eternity in his presence. But God does not force anyone to receive His love. It is a choice He leaves with each of us to make.”

“I like to use this illustration to help people understand what it means to receive God’s gift of life. Jesus said we can only enter God’s kingdom by faith, by trusting in Him. In another place, one of His followers said that it is by grace through faith that we are saved. The hand that receives God’s gift is faith. Suppose this book here is a piece of solid gold. It is mine, but I want to give it to you. What would you have to do to receive it?”

I was confused, “I don’t understand what you mean exactly.”“What would you have to do physically to receive this gift? If I try to

put it on your shoulder, it would fall off.”


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Uncle laid the book on my shoulder and caught it as it slipped down.“Oh I get it. I would have to put out my hand to take it, like this” as I

extended my hand towards him.”“That’s right” And he placed the book in my hand.“In the same way, faith is like the hand that receives God’s gift. He

wants to give life and forgiveness to everyone, but we have to receive it. I like to call it the hand of faith and you can use your hand to remember the points. The kind of faith that the Bible talks about has four dimensions. First, it means we repent. We turn from known sin and turn towards God. Next we trust in Him, not in our own merit and good deeds, but in the work that He did on the cross for us. The third thing is that we commit our lives to Him. Jesus rose again from the dead and is Lord of all and we have to make Him the new boss of our life. That means every day we get up and dedicate ourselves to obeying Him. Then when you become His disciple, you are born anew into a family that lives under God’s rule. The group that meets together in homes that you have come to, that is one of those new families that meet to encourage one another as they follow Jesus. As a member of His new family, you serve God with the gifts He has given you. So are you ready to repent, trust Him for freedom from karma and sin, commit your life to His Lordship, and serve Him in His new family?”

“You know Uncle, I cannot believe I am saying this, but I really am.”

“Good, then the last thing is that we start this journey with Jesus by a simple prayer.”

“I believe that Jesus is the truth and can bring me forgiveness and life. But I am worried about my friends and family.”

“There will be people who react to you in a negative way. You cannot help that. Jesus told us that when we suffer for His name and are reviled we are to rejoice. But you can help your friends and family to see that following Jesus faithfully is not the same as leaving your own culture and customs and following the religion and customs of foreigners. When they see that you love them, respect them, participate with them in their social life, and live a life of peace, joy, and purity, they will start to understand that Jesus is for us too, and not just for the white people.

“I have heard my parents talk about people being brainwashed when they become a Christian.”

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“Ton, what I would do is remind them of what brainwashing really means. Brainwashing is when we try to change a person’s attitude from good to bad, like training someone to kill, to steal, to sell drugs or commit suicide for some kinds of belief. Brainwashing teaches us to do bad and useless things, but believing in Jesus Christ will wash our lives clean, just like how He has washed mine. From a selfish old man, I learned to love and give to others.”

When he finished speaking Uncle Wirachai leaned forward and said in a soft voice, “Are you ready to start your journey with Jesus?”

Uncle then prayed a simple prayer sentence by sentence and I repeated it after him:

“Dear Jesus, I open my heart and invite You into my life. I’m a sinner who cannot free himself from sin. I repent and turn from my sins to follow You. I believe Jesus died on the cross to set me free, I trust Your work on the cross to save me from my sin and karma and bring me new birth as Your child. I believe that You rose from the dead, so I willingly submit my life to You as my Lord because You love me and care for me. Thank You for making me Your child and a part of Your family. I will serve You with the gifts that You give me. Amen.”

After I finished praying, Uncle Wirachai prayed that I would understand more about Jesus and be faithful to Him, and that God would bless me.

As I lay in my bed that night I thought about how different I felt. Just a few months before everything was black; I felt that I was a victim of my past lives and had bad karma. I was in despair and wanted to end my life. Now everything was full of light and joy. I had hope, a future, and someone in my life who would never forsake me. I am no longer a victim; I am God’s child. I still had debts, and money was tight and it would be for a long while. But I felt a deep peace and joy that my life was in the hands of God, who loved me deeply.


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1. Have you ever felt Jesus knocking at the door of your heart?

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2. What are your biggest obstacles to following Jesus today?

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3. Describe the “hand of faith” that Uncle Wirachai talked about.

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After praying to submit my life to Jesus that night I noticed things changing right away. I could not explain why, but there was something different now inside of me. Things that used to make me angry or depressed did not bother me in the same way. I found myself praying to God about this and finding peace and also wisdom to work with these problems.

I met every week with the group of believers that Uncle Wirachai had first introduced to me. He also asked to meet me on Wednesday evenings at a café near our houses to talk and pray for each other. I still had so many questions and he would patiently help me to understand from God’s Word.

I arrived early at the café, but still after Uncle.“Hello. You’re so early.”“I finished early at the house so I came to read. Did you eat

anything?”“I got something already, thank you.”He asked how I was doing, about my life, my job, and how the money

situation was progressing. I thought to myself, “He cares about me as if he was my father.” It made me feel so warm. Yes, I wasn’t alone in this world anymore. This old man cared about me. Meeting made us know each other more and we helped and shared our troubles and happiness. He said followers of Jesus who are friends always meet like this to be by one another’s sides.

After we had chatted for a while Uncle opened his Bible and said, “Ton, we have been learning about the five principles of the Christian life. Can you tell me what the first two principles are?

“Well you told me that we could remember these principles according to the fingers on our hand. Ok, the first one was repent and believe.”

“That is right. We turn from our sins and believe in the Good News about Jesus. That is how we start our journey but it also is the way we live on a daily basis. We turn from any known sin, and we trust God not

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just for freedom from sin and karma but for everything, for all of our daily needs.”

“Let me see” I said, “that first principle is how we start and carry on with our life in Jesus. The second is what we do after we enter God’s family—to love God with all our heart, soul, and mind and to love our neighbor as ourselves.”

“That’s great. Now let’s move on to the third principle. We have looked at how we enter our new life and what we do. Now the third is about how we ‘fill up our tanks’ and have power to walk with Jesus. We pray, worship, and read the Bible both individually and with other believers. Prayer, worship, and reading the Bible are spiritual food that feeds us and gives us strength. Praying is talking to God. We can pray anywhere, anytime. God wants to talk to us because He loves us so much. The Bible is like food that we need every day. If we don’t eat we won’t have energy. Reading the Bible is spiritual eating. It lets us know God more and will teach us new behaviors to help us become more like Jesus.

“You know Uncle, I have experienced that already. Some days I don’t read the Bible and I feel discouraged or anxious, but on days when I can read and pray, it makes a big difference.”

“That happens to all of us Ton. There is a verse that says we do not live by food alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God. We need spiritual food in order to stay spiritually strong. It is important that we do these things not only privately each day but with other believers. When you are reconciled to God you become part of a new family that lives under God’s rule. Sometimes these groups meet in homes, but other times they meet in a public building. You have heard in our language the word ‘church’ before?”

“Yes, that is what surprised me. Whenever I hear the word church I always think of the foreigner’s religion where they go on Sunday. But you meet in people’s homes. Is it the same?”

“It is like this Ton. In the Bible the word church refers to a gathering of people, not to a building. Jesus said He would build His church, meaning His family, and that when 2 or 3 people gather in His name He is in the midst of them. Our group of believers has all gone to the kind of buildings that we call church. But we decided to meet in homes for a special reason. We wanted to be able to invite our friends to hear about Jesus without feeling like they were going to a foreign religion meeting.

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In fact many people who go to a big meeting at a building on Sunday also meet in a home with a smaller group to pray and study the Bible like we do. What is important is that you spend time with God’s people every week.”

“The fourth principle is that you are a steward. Everything we have comes from God and you are not the owner but a steward of the time, talents, and the finances that He has entrusted to you. God gives us wonderful blessings, but we receive blessings so that we can give blessings. The final principle is about our most important task that we are left on earth to do, to bear witness to Jesus to all the people.”

When Uncle finished he pulled out a sheet of paper from his Bible and wrote out these words.

How do we start following Jesus? Repent and believe

What do we do after we believe? Love God and love our neighbor

How do we get spiritual energy? Pray, worship, and read the Bible individually and with God’s family

How do we serve? As stewards of our time, abilities, and financial resources

What is our most important work? Bearing witness“That is really helpful. I will keep working to remember these things

and put them into practice.”“Ton, Jesus gave us another picture to help us understand what it

means to be reconciled to God. He talked about being born again. We are dead in sin and when we invite Jesus into our life we are born anew spiritually and have a new relationship with God. Spiritually we are like a little baby and we grow up to become mature in Jesus.”

“What do you mean by mature in Jesus?”“We measure being an adult by how much responsibility we take.

When you are small your parents do everything for you, but when you are an adult you are responsible for yourself. When we ‘grow up’ in Jesus we take responsibility to feed ourselves spiritually, obey Him, follow His commands, and pattern our lives after Him. God wants our character to be like that of His Son Jesus. Sometimes we talk about the Great Commandment and the Great Commission. Jesus said we are to

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love God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength and to love our neighbor as ourselves. Then He told us that we are to go out and make disciples of all the peoples of the earth and teach them to obey all that He has commanded us. In another scripture, Jesus told us that as His followers we are salt and light. In the old days salt was used to preserve food, so we are to act as God’s people in society to preserve it for good things. Light penetrates darkness, so we are to be His vessels to bring His light to people who live in spiritual darkness.”

“That is a lot to think about. I hope that I can learn to follow Jesus well.”

“That is what God’s family is about Ton. We share with each other and encourage one another as we walk on Jesus’ path. You will be just fine. Remember, God loves you and is faithful to His promises.”


1. What are the five principles of walking with Jesus?

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2. What is the meaning of the word church?

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3. What does it mean to “grow up” in your faith in Jesus?

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A few months went by and I continued to meet with Uncle Wirachai and to attend the house group. I became stronger and more confident in my faith as I experienced God’s grace and power in my own life and in the family of believers.

My friends found out about my decision to follow Jesus when I stopped drinking with them at their gatherings and special events. The believers encouraged me to maintain my friendships with these people but to make a firm stand about not participating with them in immoral activities. At first they ridiculed me badly. But I discovered that as I held firm and still kept in communication with them, some of these friends would ask me privately what was happening. I did not do a very good job of explaining things about Jesus in these early encounters, but some of my friends actually attended our house group as a result of our conversations.

As our people’s New Year time approached I became nervous. It is our custom to go back home to our parents and perform various ceremonies of respect. I had not yet told my parents about my new faith and I was sure that it was going to be very difficult for them to accept. Uncle Wirachai had helped me to understand that when we give our allegiance to the living God we can no longer bow down to or worship any other god. That much was clear to me, but so many of our customs were a mixture of things that included worship of gods or other powers along with other practices that were not actually religious in nature.

One day Uncle Wirachai said that he wanted to get together with me and another couple who were new to following Jesus and talk with us about walking with the Lord in our society. He said we also were going to meet our parents soon, and he wanted to help us prepare for sharing our experiences with our families.

We met at a little restaurant and he introduced me to Pichai and his wife Juriporn. They were fun and friendly people. Pichai came from a Chinese family. We chatted while we ate and when we finished Uncle Wirachai said, “I wanted to talk to the three of you because you are all

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three new disciples of Jesus. New Year is coming and I know that you are going to visit your parents. This is an important time for you and I thought it would be good for us to talk about following Jesus faithfully while being a part of our society.”

Juriporn leaned forward and said, “Uncle, what do we call ourselves? Some of my friends tell me I am a Christian and that I have sold out to the foreigners. I have tried to explain like what you told me about us having a relationship with God through Jesus, but they say that anything to do with Jesus is for white people and it is Christianity.”

“Although it is very common now for people who believe in Jesus to be called Christians, when that word was first used it was a term of ridicule. It meant people who were crazy about Christ, the Greek word for the Messiah, God’s anointed one. The early believers called themselves followers of the Way, because Jesus said, “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life.” You have noticed in our home groups that we call ourselves “followers of Jesus.” We chose that specifically because we wanted to help people understand that we are not part of a foreign religion, but that we love and obey Jesus while being a part of our culture. You have already experienced that most of our people assume when you talk about Jesus that it has to do with the religion of Christianity. They reject that right off because they think it is only for foreigners. That is a big barrier that keeps many of our people from even thinking that Jesus might be for them. So, by choosing a different way to talk about ourselves we are opening the door for conversation and a fresh understanding of what it means to follow Jesus in our society.”

Phichai said, “Alright, I understand that. But what about attending meetings at what people call a “church” building. Should we do that or not? Those people believe in Jesus just like we do.”

“They do, but they also look very much like the Western Christians in their style, music, and the way they present the message of Jesus. It is not a problem to be a part of such groups that believe and proclaim the truth of the Bible. But we have chosen to try and retain as much of our customs and culture as possible that are not against any of God’s commands in the Bible so that we can talk with our friends about faith in Jesus. Remember that before you decided to follow Jesus, one of your biggest problems was thinking that Jesus was the white man’s religion.

“That’s correct,” I said. “One of the things that I was most afraid

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of was how my friends and family would react. I used to make fun of people who decided to follow the foreigner’s religion.”

“So you see,” said Uncle Wirachai, “that is why we have purposely tried to live out our faith in a way that relates as closely as possible to the community and society that we are in. We want to be different as God’s people, living holy and pure lives, but not so different in what we do that would cause people to think we are forsaking things that we hold dear from our culture.”

“I think I am starting to understand that now Uncle. Some of my friends who don’t like Christians who go to church have talked with me and even come to our house group because of the way we try to practice our faith. The question I have is how do we know what we can and cannot do? For instance, what about paying respect to our elders during the New Year?”

Uncle Wirachai took out a sheet of paper from his Bible again, and started to draw a picture. “Let me try and explain it this way. In the past some people who came to know Jesus felt like they had to separate themselves completely from their old way of life. The Bible says that we are to turn from the worship of all things that are not God, and to live pure and holy lives according to God’s righteous standards. So we are to be different than others in whom we worship and give our allegiance to, and in our character. But what happened is that many who believed stopped almost all of their connections with their friends and family. They did not participate in the social life and ceremonies of their people, even those that were not against God’s commands. So to their society it seemed like they had taken on the practices of the foreigners and stopped identifying with their own people.”

“Now I get it! That’s why you seemed kind of strange to me, but not strange like a foreigner. You were different because you did not drink or do immoral things like the rest of us, but you were always with us at our ceremonies. It was your character that was different, but you did not separate yourself from us. You were doing that so you could talk with us about Jesus; weren’t you?”

“Good Ton. We are to be God’s salt and light to those around us. As followers of Jesus we are in this world, but we do not live according to its standards. We are a new family of God living under His rule.”

Uncle turned back to Phichai and Juriporn. “But let me get back to

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your question. How do we know what to do and not do when it comes to various ceremonies and practices? A wise man suggested three simple rules that help us to think about this. First, we keep most things. When we become a follower of Jesus we still greet people the same way, we eat the same foods, wear the clothes of our people, and live in the same houses. Anything that is not against God’s commands from our local way of life and customs we should keep. Our way of life and customs are beautiful things that God has given us the ability to make. Did you know that the last book of the Bible says that the treasures of the nations will be brought before God in the new earth? The second rule is that some things we adapt and give a new meaning. So we can take a practice like our pillar raising ceremony for a new house. Normally we have people come and chant, but for believers in Jesus we have prayer over the pillar and ask God’s blessing. So we keep the ceremony but adapt it. There are lots of things that we can do that with. Finally, there are a few things that we must stop doing and get rid of. Most importantly for us, we do not worship anything or anyone except the living God.” Uncle had been scratching out these thoughts as he talked onto his piece of paper.

“So in a situation where we are at some kind of ceremony or not we have to ask ourselves whether or not doing a certain act is showing worship and respect towards something or someone besides God. In the Bible Jesus joined traditional ceremonies like weddings, funerals, and other kinds of celebrations. That is why I always try to attend things that are happening in the community. But if it comes to a part where I have to show respect or worship for something beside God, I decline, or simply stay quiet and pray for the people. The Bible teaches us we are to honor our parents, so there are many ways that we can show that honor without breaking the commandment to worship God only.”

Phichai asked, “So what about a funeral, can we still join the ceremony?”

“We can attend but we don’t worship anything but God. During the religious session we can sit calmly and pray for the family of the dead. We can use flowers to express our condolences for the dead.”

“What about the funeral chanting?” Jiraporn asked.“Believers in Jesus don’t join the funeral chanting. Most of the time

we can sit but keep our hands down. You can pray for God’s consolation on the family of the dead.”

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“But we have another even bigger problem Uncle” she said. “We are also of Chinese descent and we have to go to cemetery to worship our ancestors. What do we do? We can’t avoid that.”

“When people do not go at all with their families to such events, it is very hurtful isn’t it? Their family feels betrayed. Going to the cemetery with our family is good, showing them that we care and that they are important to us. When we go there it doesn’t mean we worship anything. We can even hold the candles and incenses but in our hearts we pray to God. Tell him we are thankful for our ancestors and how they have helped us. We’re not worshipping but we’re paying respect to the dead and our families.”

Now my mind was really going as I was thinking of all the things that I had done or watched others do and had never given thought of what I would do since I was following Jesus. “What about making merit Uncle? It is so hard to follow the eightfold path and break out of the cycle of rebirths that everyone just tries to make merit so they can come back to a better life in their next life.”

“Followers of Jesus don’t do merit making things. We know that our future is secure. Jesus has opened the way to live with Him in His presence, so we have a hope. Jesus has given us His righteousness as well; it is not something we need to earn. So there is no need to make merit. Some people do merit making rituals to comfort their heart when they are stressed or discouraged. As followers of Jesus we can meditate on God’s Word, and the Bible says we will be blessed and find peace.”

Phichai interrupted, “But what about the money that we give in our house group. Are we making merit when we give to God?”

“When we give our finances to God that is making merit. It’s showing our thankfulness and obedience to God. It is part of our stewardship. Everything belongs to God but He asks that we give from what He provides for us. Our groups of believers use this money to help the poor and to do God’s work, sending forth others to tell the story of Jesus.”

“Uncle” I said, “I used to go to the different spirit shrines and make vows if they would help me. I went when I was a student a lot, wanting to pass my exams. I also went because of my debts. There is no way I would do that now since I know that God is the One who helps me.”

“You’re right. God promises to supply the things we need if we will seek after His rule in our lives and His righteousness and justice. It is the

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same with all the kinds of practices our people do where they are trying to find out about the future or to gain some kind of blessing. They go to astrologers, palm readers, spirit mediums, and such things. God is our protector, our shield, our refuge and provider. There is nothing too hard for Him, and there is no need too big or small that we cannot ask Him. Listen to what Psalm 50 says about this…”

Uncle opened his Bible, found the place, and read: “Sacrifice thank offerings to God, fulfill your vows to the Most High, and call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you will honor me.” We were quiet for a few moments, just thinking about how great are God’s promises. Then Uncle spoke again.

“I know that some of this is hard to understand, but the important part is to be faithful to Jesus while living in our culture, not rejecting it, so that we can be God’s light to the people—our own people whom He loves. Think of your life as a bridge that Jesus can use to cross over to share His love and power with your family and friends.”

“When you go and see you parents, pray for wisdom as to the right timing and situation to share with them about your decision to follow Jesus. In the Bible, Peter, one of Jesus’ disciples told wives to win unbelieving husbands “without the word.” He counseled them to live changed lives so that they can see God’s work, and then their words will make more sense. Let your parents see that you are different. They may indeed be very angry and threaten you or cut you off. Take courage. This has happened many times, but usually when they see their children are different, good, pure, and even more respectful and loving than others, they will seek to reconcile with us. Remember, we are taught to overcome evil with good.”

It was getting late, so we decided to walk home together. Uncle prayed that the three of us would have God’s wisdom, grace, power, and guidance as we met our parents in a few weeks.

As I lay down that night I thought about how different my life was now. Outwardly things were not that different—the same house and still paying off debts. But inside my heart was at peace. I had Jesus as my Lord and closest friend. I felt His presence in my life, and I had a new family of people who loved and encouraged me. I felt stronger than ever that I had a mission, that God had left me here among my people to share His light and love. The adventure was just beginning…

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1. Why does Uncle Wirachai’s group not use the term “Christian”? What is the original meaning of that word?

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2. What three principles can help us in deciding how to respond to customs and practices in our culture?

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3. How are you going to approach your family and friends about your faith in Jesus?

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Reference ListDhammananda, K. Sri. 2002. What Buddhists Believe. 4th ed. Kuala

Lumpur, Malaysia: Buddhist Missionary Society Malaysia. Rahula, Walpola. 1974. What the Buddha Taught. New York: Grove

Press.

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